People praise 'genius' hack to avoid paying for extra luggage

A new travel hack for those looking to avoid splashing out on cabin baggage fees when flying is going viral online.
And all that's needed is a common travel accessory.
In a video on TikTok, Nina Edwine (@nina_edwine) shared her ingenious trick to stuff an empty neck pillow with items that would otherwise force her to pay for additional baggage.
And despite the small size of the travel pillow, Nina was able to pack in 10 items of clothing, including a bra, tops and a dress.
The video, captioned 'rat technique to avoid paying €50 for cabin baggage', has already been viewed 2.6 million times on TikTok.
It's also attracted almost 2,000 comments.
The tactic has been dubbed both 'genius' and 'legendary' by those users of the video-sharing app.
However, some people are unsure whether this will actually work.
'I was traveling with Ryanair last Thursday and if you only have a small luggage you can't have nothing else,' wrote @kot_w_glowie1.
'The lady by the gate told EVERYONE to put the pillow in their bag or throw them away.'
Another user, who claimed to work at an airport, said: 'As a gate agent, we still notice and we'll still charge you that.'
Sharanjit Shokar said that they 'did this with a normal pillow and Ryanair staff at Marrakesh were not having it'.
Others joked that Nina Edwine was giving away a secret that low-cost airlines will now clamp down on.
'You lot are exposing this and when we get to the gate about to hop on a Ryanair flight, they will want to check everything,' wrote @kima_ziora.
Some users shared their own tips for avoiding airline fees.
'Buy any item at duty free get a bag to go and you can put your clothes etc in that bag,' read one comment, with another user replying that they've 'done this so many times, works every time'.
Another tip was to use 'one of those Uniqlo cross body bags', and to 'wear it under your coat with a scarf round your neck to disguise the strap'.
A landmark court ruling in Spain last month decided that hand luggage is an essential part of air travel and should not be subject to extra fees.
The passenger involved in the case will be reimbursed £124 (€147) by Ryanair for hand luggage costs charged on five flights between 2019 and 2024 following the judgment.
But an aviation legal expert warned that as a result of the case, budget airlines could charge higher 'all inclusive' fares.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

NBC News

23 minutes ago

• NBC News

Accusations of plagiarism, AI use and author bullying: 'BookTok' rocked by recent scandals

A scandal over allegations of plagiarism is rocking the book community on TikTok, becoming the latest drama to unfold in a pocket of the internet that was once considered a safer space from online toxicity. 'Beverly,' a romance novel by indie author Laura J. Robert, had picked up recent buzz on the social media platform, where readers and authors often discuss the latest titles and give recommendations. But several creators removed their videos praising Robert's book after allegations emerged that it was a rip-off of the indie author R.J. Lewis' 'Obsessed,' which was published in 2016. Both books have plots that follow a lead female character and her romance with her childhood friend. Some people posted excerpts of Lewis' words juxtaposed with Robert's, identifying what they described as similarities. Others accused Robert of using artificial intelligence to tweak and lengthen Lewis' book to create her own version. A handful of people speculated the authors could be the same person — because Robert's initials are Lewis' initials backward — and that the controversy could all be a PR stunt. NBC News was unable to reach Robert on Friday. Lewis declined to comment further. On BookTok, some have cited the somewhat niche controversy as yet another example of the community's shift away from lighthearted content around new releases. 'Does anyone miss just having a silly, goofy, fun time, having a bit of a laugh?' Lola Oluremi, a BookTok creator, said in a recent video discussing 'Beverly' and 'Obsessed.' 'I feel like every time I log onto BookTok now, it's something.' The online space, which has been credited for inspiring a fresh wave of interest in literature, hasn't been devoid of drama in the past. But this month, the 'Beverly' accusations followed two other separate situations that had caused some division among BookTokers online. Author Ali Hazelwood, who is behind popular novels such as 'The Love Hypothesis,' left Instagram purportedly after she was 'bullied' for a comment she made during a panel discussion at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books in April. Hazelwood weighed in on who she thought Katniss Everdeen, the protagonist of Suzanne Collins' 'Hunger Games' books, should have ended up with romantically, saying it should have been her childhood friend Gale, rather than her fellow tribute, Peeta. 'He's a terrible, mean, selfish person,' Hazelwood said of the character Peeta, a baker's son from District 12 who was reaped alongside Katniss in the books. The clip of Hazelwood's remarks was widely circulated and blasted online by people who accused her of having a bad take. Hazelwood didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. Since she went dark online, several BookTokers have come to her defense, reflecting on how the community has seemingly become more prone to getting lost in meaningless discourse. 'The way y'all have lost the plot over a fictional bread boy has left me genuinely questioning the mental health of the book community,' Shelley Fleuridor, the YouTuber behind the channel 'Book Chats with Shelley,' said in a recent video delving into the Hazelwood backlash. 'We need to talk about what's happening to this community and why some of you genuinely need to be placed in a reading timeout immediately, maybe permanently.' Also this past month, Victoria Aveyard, the author of the 'Red Queen' books, sparked a wave of backlash and speculation on BookTok after she post a video alluding to another author's using generative AI in a novel without naming the purported writer. She said she didn't name the person because she didn't want to get sued. 'Using GenAI to come up with characters, plots and story ideas isn't writing. It's theft,' Aveyard said. 'Using GenAI doesn't make you a writer. It makes you a thief.' She said generative AI has been trained on copyrighted material that 'has been stolen from artists without license or compensation.' Some subsequent posts from users accuse Aveyard of being a 'mean girl' obsessed with 'drama.' In other videos, some try to guess which author she was referring to. Meanwhile, a handful of authors have also been posting videos of their writing and editing processes to prove their work isn't made with AI. With 'Beverly,' it remains unclear whether there will be consequences for Robert beyond online fallout. Robert's social media pages and her author website were no longer online Friday. 'Beverly' has also been removed from Amazon. The title remains on GoodReads, where several people have posted comments about the plagiarism accusations and given the book a one-star review. Lewis posted about the plagiarism allegations on Instagram this week, calling the situation an indie author's 'worst nightmare.' "I'm an author who does not have a big online presence and thank all who have reached out to bring this to my attention as I don't have much visibility on the social media space," she wrote. She said she has contacted Amazon to raise a copyright infringement case and hopes 'that people in the booktok space realize this author is stealing content and profiting from it.'

Daily Mirror

31 minutes ago

• Daily Mirror

'We made a change after Covid that's let us quit our jobs to travel the world'

Ryan Losasso and Jade Beaty, 30, are now known as Live The Dash and travel across the world filming their exploits for their TikTok account, which is followed by 505,000 people A couple quit their desk jobs and now travel the world full-time after discovering what they had captured on holiday. Ryan Losasso and Jade Beaty, 30, are now known as Live The Dash, one of the biggest UK travel creators with 505,000 followers on TikTok. They live a life many dream of, getting paid to whizz around the world to intriguing destinations. ‌ The advertising workers had not planned to become full-time TikTok content creators. In fact, it wasn't until they returned from a big six-month trip at the turn of the Covid lockdowns that they realised what they were sitting on. ‌ "We had all this video content when the world shut down, and we had a lot of time on our hands. So we turned to this huge stock of footage," Ryan told the Mirror. "We set ourselves a challenge of posting a video every day for 30 days. Then when some of that did really well, it spurred us on. We continued to post every day for six months." Do you have a travel story to share? Email webtravel@ READ MORE: Tourist warning to 10 million as Europe's hottest capital on alert Jade added: "It was surprising how quickly we got through that content. On a walk in Spain, the videos were doing quite well, and we realised we were going to run out of content soon. We started joking that we'd start going on trips." At first, the couple juggled their desk jobs with travel, booking themselves onto the cheapest flight out after they clocked off on a Friday and returning on Sunday. Two years ago, they decided to go full time. The risk has clearly paid off, as Jade and Ryan are among the most watched travel TikTok channels and won the platform's Travel Award for 2024. Part of the secret to their success is putting in the research hours before they go on a trip and then only travelling when they've landed on a great idea. That might be heading to New York to see if the hallowed 'dollar slice' of pizza can still be purchased, or around the UK in search for a genuine 99p 99 whippy. ‌ They've also spent the night on the fastest sleeper train in the world, which rushes snoozing passengers from Hong Kong to Shanghai. "Was it amazing? The tech is amazing, but you're sharing with three other strangers. It reaches 270 mph, but it's super smooth," Ryan explained. "For TikTok specifically, we have our hooks before we go. We film all we can, we film the journey, we film two intros, two hooks. We bet on all the horses." The search for something new that will engage their audiences takes the pair to places they might otherwise not have visited, which often turn out to be the most enjoyable. READ MORE: Brits warned of travel chaos as European airport hit by 10th walkout in 45 days "Somewhere I wasn't expecting much from was Weston-super-mare. It had a lot of cheap whippies. It is obviously a faded Victorian seaside town, but the beach is gorgeous," Ryan said. ‌ Jade added: "We also like to hunt out weird hotels. We stayed in a cow cabin with unlimited free milk, near Ed Sheeran's hometown, called Easton Farm Park. We also stayed in these huge tree houses in Derby." The old adage of 'if you do what you love, you'll never work a day in your life' seems true in the couple's case. They still have the travel bug and are hugely excited by their trips. Part of that means pushing themselves to engage with people they meet along the way. "We have this rule that whenever we're on the plane, we have to speak to the person next to us. One guy told us 'do what excites you'. Six years later, we still tell ourselves that. We call it Conrad's message." ‌ The couple also recommends running every day and practicing good communication for travelling couples who want to avoid arguments while on the road. In terms of finding inspiration, they recommend using the adjustable 'For You' feed on TikTok. It is now possible to customise content preferences so you can see more or less of certain content in topics from over 10 categories – including travel, sports, nature, and food and drink An AI-powered 'smart keyword filter" that allows users to limit content they don't want to see'. "The For You feed is the heart of TikTok, a way for us to discover new content. We use the new features, manage topics, and think it's really cool that you can filter which topics you want to see more or less of."

Times

2 hours ago

• Times

How to pull off summer's no make-up look

No make-up make-up is the ultimate beauty oxymoron. Don't expect it to involve fewer products or any less money, but it will most definitely leave you looking your best without seeming overly made-up. In other words, it is perfect for long summer days and lazy holidays. Here's what really works. Stila All About The Blur StickNow this is a little stick of magic that goes on clear, mattifies and gives a soft-focus finish but without pigment. Use on shiny T-zones on warmer days and watch pores, unwanted shine and sweat disappear. £28.50; Merit The Uniform Tinted Mineral Sunscreen SPF50This tinted sunscreen has taken the beauty cognoscenti by storm this summer. Why? Because it truly works on all skin shades and gives a flattering finish, especially on sensitive and oilier skin. It's not a primary SPF but ideal for an added layer of sun protection. It looks great on the go, comes in 15 shades and is a multifunction summertime saver. £34; Erborian CC CrèmeSeeing is believing with this little beauty from the wildly popular Korean brand. It goes on looking like a moisturiser yet turns to a lightly pigmented, Instagram-esque 'Paris filter' for your face. Just recently it has been reduced in price. It comes in four shades but more are promised later this year. I tested this on This Morning and every male presenter wanted to take one home. Your skin on its best day in a tube. £38; • Caroline Hirons: Britain's most powerful beauty expert House of Hur Moist Ampoule BlusherThis is the serum soft-tint liquid blusher that took TikTok by storm as the much more reasonably priced alternative to Armani. It comes in three shades and is gorgeous: super-flattering and sheer, it blends Korean hydrating skincare with a hint of a tint. £15; Jane Iredale Just Kissed Lip and Cheek StainThis lip balm goes on sheer but reacts to the pH of your lips to create a flattering, slightly intensified version of your lip colour. What's more, it acts as a lipcare balm at the same time to stave off the threat of dry, parched lips. £35, in four shades; Chanel Les Beiges Water-Fresh TintChanel has trouble keeping this in stock the minute the sun shines because it is such a cult product. It adds a hint of a tint, a hit of hydration and a healthy glow. Add concealer for more coverage, but this is the type of base you can wear on the beach and not look as if you're wearing a scrap of make-up (just great skin). £55, in eight shades; 19/99 Lash Tint MascaraNow this is clever: a mascara that is so subtle it can be worn in your brows too. It looks more like a lash tint as it adds colour but no volume or length, for a really natural and pretty look. It's tubing too, so no telltale smudges on hot and sweaty days. Better yet, it will rinse away with just warm water when you want. This is a brilliant Canadian brand that specialises in multipurpose products that are affordable too. £14, in three shades; • Read more beauty product reviews and advice from our experts Wonderskin FYP Translucent PowderI don't care how natural you look, you never want to be sweaty or shiny, and this totally translucent powder will work over even the most subtle base and on any skin tone. I discovered this when chatting to the make-up legend Val Garland, who keeps it in her SOS kit on set both for her own face when filming Glow Up and for models on cover shoots. £18; Glossier Shadow Stick Sometimes you need just a touch of shadow to define the eye in the lash line and in the crease of both eyes. This comes in five shades with music-themed names: try Riff for contouring – it's the ideal neutral shade that creates shadow and definition, blends easily, stays in place and doesn't really look like eyeshadow. £22; Find @nadinebaggott on Instagram and YouTube where she answers all your beauty questions